Aseptic packaging is widely used to prolong the shelf life of food and drink products. With conventional aseptic packaging, the product is filled and sealed in the package under aseptic conditions. It is well known from people of the art, that aseptic conditions are aimed at preventing as well as possible, contamination of the product and of the inner packaging in contact with the product, from being exposed to germs of the environment. The product is said to be aseptic, when the number of packages filled does not exceed 1 per 3,000 units. The almost irreducible rate of failure is mainly due to the fact that containers are filled open in the environment within the filling machine, which itself is cleaned aseptically.
One such prior art dispenser system that employs an aseptically filled package is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,024,242. The package includes a pouch that holds the food or beverage, and a flexible, open-ended tube connected to the pouch for dispensing the product therethrough. A pinch valve is used in the dispenser to pinch the open end of the tube and thereby close the tube from the ambient atmosphere. In order to dispense product, the pinch valve is released from the tube, and the product is in turn allowed to flow from the pouch and through the open end of the tube.
The prior art dispenser and packaging are limited by numerous drawbacks, including:                a. When the aseptically disinfected pouch is connected to the outflow tube the environment is aseptic, not sterile;        b. Usually a pre-sterilized tube is entered into the filling machine, through an aseptic transfer port, after removal of the outer bag in which the tube has been separately sterilized. The unpacking and the transfer are also subject to stringent regulations for preventing at most the contamination of the tubing and of the transfer in general. These components are also usually not sterile;        c. The pinch valve, on the other end of the tube, leaves a certain distal segment of the tube open to the aseptic environment (i.e., not in a sterile environment). One solution is to introduce a sterile cap to close the very end of the tube. However, when the filled pouch, attached to its aseptically connected tube, is leaving the aseptic environment of the filling machine, if one colony of germs has contaminated either transfer, connection of filling, due to the human environment, a certain number of pouches (no more than 1/3000) are contaminated for the shelf life. If the germs in the pouch are aerogen germs, the infected pouch is bloated, a visible phenomenon which allows elimination of the infected pouch. If the germs are not aerogen, it is very difficult to detect the infected pouch and remove it;        d. At user's location, the terminal cap is removed, leaving for a period of time the open tube open and subject to the contamination by the environment. In hospitals where a lot of germs are known to be resistant to antibiotics, the ingress of such a colony of germs dramatically increases the risk. Moreover, the risk further increases when the tube is to be connected to an open recipient for mixing products prior to administration to a patient. Several studies have shown that in US hospitals, only about 25% to about 50% of the products administered after connections to the patients are contaminated. When such connections are made at home, by the relatives of the patients, the contamination rate can be about 80%; and        e. The risk of contamination is also subject to the nature of the product itself. Usually drugs are rather inert product and are not prone to grow germs. However, as soon as there is water in contact with a contaminated air environment, the risk increases, especially in hospitals. If the product is a non-acid product, such as a milk-based product, it must be maintained under refrigeration to ensure the life of the product. Moreover, there is a need for an independent, sterile pouch connector which may be used with a variety of pouches.        
Thus, a method to alleviate the risks discussed above including the following risks is needed:                risk related to contamination of the aseptic environment of the filling machine, via an aseptic transfer port, for example;        risk during connection of the tubing in the filling machine; and        risk to contaminate the inner tube upon uncapping the tube end.        
All risks related to the connection of a tubing to a pouch can be significantly reduced. The risk related to the contamination of the connector also needs to be addressed to dramatically reduce the rate of Nosocomial Infections, especially, and in general, to reduce the risk of contamination of all the products filled in pouches, whether for injection, feeding, industrial or any other kinds of uses of products delivered in pouches.
It is an object of the present invention to overcome one or more of the above-described drawbacks and/or disadvantages of the prior art.